Thailand-Cambodia Cluster Bomb Issue Needs To Be Confronted

[webfact]

EDITORIAL

Cluster bomb issue needs to be confronted

By The Nation

Thailand, Cambodia have not signed convention banning these munitions

The UK-based Cluster Munition Coalition claimed that it had evidence and confirmation from the Thai representative in Geneva, Sihasak Puangketkaeo, showing that Thailand had used cluster bombs in the border skirmish with Cambodia.

Sihasak, Thailand's ambassador to the UN, said he had been misquoted.

"Unfortunately, I was misquoted in the press release. I never used the term 'cluster munitions' at any point in the meeting when referring to the 'dual-purpose improved conventional munitions' type of weapon we used," Sihasak told The Nation.

The ambassador said he had double-checked with Thai top brass on the types of weapons that had been used in the border clash.

CMC director Laura Cheeseman insisted that two separate, onsite investigations had proved that 155mm Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions (DPICM) were used by the Thai military during the exchange. "These are cluster munitions," she told The Nation.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi said the Thai side had used DPICM, which could not be considered "cluster munitions".

Cluster munitions are defined as projectiles that are either dropped from the air or launched on the ground before they separate into smaller explosive fragments that cover a wide area. This sort of weapon was widely used in the Vietnam War, and people are still facing the risk of unexploded ordnance.

"The main purpose for using this weapon was to retaliate against the Russian-made BM21 multi-rocket launchers that were used indiscriminately by Cambodia," Thani said. The weapon was used in "self-defence", under the principles of "necessity, proportionality and in compliance with the military code of conduct", he said.

To begin with, war is hell and the weapons we human beings use to kill one another are horrible. That's probably the reason why the international community came up with these concepts of proportionality and rules of engagement.

And so when one side accuses the other of violating these rules, it's a serious matter.

Cambodia and Thailand are not among the 108 countries that have signed the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions, an international treaty that prohibits the use, transfer and stockpiling of cluster bombs.

However, Thailand, and Cambodia for that matter, should not hide behind technicalities, about whether we are signatories to the convention or not. We have a moral obligation to one another to resolve our differences peacefully.

CMC condemns Thailand's use of DPICM but says nothing about the use of BM21, which were fired indiscriminately against Thai targets.

But let's hope we're not just splitting words here. Victims on both sides of the border don't give a hoot about international conventions. For them, a loss is a loss, whether it's life or property.

But if we want to get technical about it, BM21 doesn't discriminate against its target or the collateral damage either.

In this respect, it is important to heed the advice of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which pointed out that cluster bombs should be understood in the context of humanitarian principles and that the convention is an important addition to the body of international humanitarian law.

The convention establishes new rules to ensure that cluster munitions are no longer used and that the existing humanitarian problems associated with these weapons are addressed. Importantly, the convention has specific provisions that aim to meet the needs of victims and affected communities, ICRC said.

To date 38 former users, producers and stockpilers of cluster munitions have joined the treaty, leaving some 73 countries continuing to stockpile the explosives.

-- The Nation 2011-04-11

[jsflynn603]

What part about "cluster" does Thailand not get? They were either DPICM M483, a projectile with 88 bomblets, or the M864 that carries "only" 72 (but offers "dud" protection. From Wikipedia: "The first true DPICM was the 155 mm M483, produced in the 1970s. By 1975 an improved version the M483A1 was being used. The projectile carried 88 M42/M46 grenade like dual purpose submunitions. The 155 mm M864 projectile entered production in 1987, and featured a base bleed that enhances the range of the projectile, although it still carries the same M42/M46 grenades. The base bleed mechanism reduces the submunition load to 72."

[zzaa09]

How about the military authorities just ignore the pressing issue. or distract the consciousness somewhere else.....or even the proverbial denial and cover-up. These activities have never been in place before.

[Arkady]

The manufacturer doesn't specifically call these cluster bombs in its catalogue (who would). Therefore the Thai denial is technically correct. In the same way the US military didn't use napalm in the first Gulf War. It used "fuel bombs". 555

[anterian]

Indeed if you look up the technical specifications they are not cluster bombs but multiple fragmentation bombs. However with a 20% failure rate for the bomblets which are motion sensitive these duds satisfy the criteria of cluster bombs.